Car-axle power-transmitting mechanism.



R. VUILLEUMIEFI.

CAR AXLE POWER TRANSMITTING MECHANISM. v

APPLICATION FILED IAN. I0. I9I2. V w 1 1,168,446. I latented Jan. 16, 1916 2 SHEETS-SHEET I.

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' ATTORNEY R.'VUILLEUMIER.

"CAR AXLE POWER TRANSMITTING MECHANISM.

- APPLICATION FILED JAN. 10, I912.

1,1683%, Patented 11111.18, 1916.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2. v

WITNESSES STATES PATENT OFFICE.

RUDOLPH VUILLEUMIER, OF NEW ROCHELLE, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR TO THE SAFETY CAR HEATING AND LIGHTING 00., OF NEW YORK, N. Y., A CORPORATION OF NEW JERSEY.

CAR-AXLE POWER- TRANSMITTING MECHANISM.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Jan. 18, 1916.

To all who) it may concern.

Be it known that I. RU OLPH VUILLEU- MIER. a citizen of the United States, resid-' ing at New Rochelle, in the county of Vestchester and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Car-Axle Power-Transmitting Mechanism. of which the following is a full. clear. and exact description, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

This invention relates to car axle power transmitting mechanism. and with regard to certain more specific features thereof, to mechanism for efficiently driving a carlighting generator from a car axle throughout all variations in speed of the latter.

One of the objects of the present inven tion is to provide a simple and compact ccnstructim of the above character.

Another object is to eliminate the shocks and excessive strains upon the driving belt and the bearings of the driven member.

Another object is to reduce slipping of the belt.

A further object is to provide a practical and efficient mechanism of the above character which will be cheap to manufacture and durable in construction.

Other objects will be in part obvious and in part pointed out hereinafter.

The invention accordingly consists in the features of construction. combinations of elements and arrangement of parts which will be exemplified in the construction hereinafter set forth. and the scope of the application of which will be indicated in the following claims In the accompanying drawings, wherein is shown one of various possible embodimentsis inventionFigure 1 is a plan view of the complete apparatus: Fig. 2 is an end elevation of the machanism shown in Fig. 1: Figs. 3 and are detail views in plan and ele ation of a preferred form of portion of driving belt: and Figs. 5 and 6 are similar views of a modification.

Similar reference characters refer to similar parts throughout the different views of the drawings. 1

Referring now to these drawings in detail and more particularly to Figs. 1 and 2. 1 denotes a car truck of any desired construction. preferably of the cast steel type. having a depressed end transom :2. and provided with suitable journals. not herein shown. for an axle 3 connecting wheels 4. Secured to each side of the truck is a supporting bar 5 having an outwardly turned ear 6. Adjustably mounted upon each of these bars 5 is a stirrup 7 having a lug 8 which is connected by means of a bolt 9 with the ear 6. It is quite clear that by turning this bolt 9 the position of the stirrups 7 may be adjusted longitudinally of the truck. Suitable nuts and lock nuts 10 maintain the desired adjustment. The stirrups which engage both sides of the supporting member 5 are provided with bolts 11 passing through slots 12 in the supporting member. which not only prevent an upward removal of the stirrup, but also limit its range of adjustment and act as an additional securing means for maintaining adjustment. The stirrups 7 support a transverse rod 13 passing through a sleeve 14 connected directly with the casing of a generator 15. Clamping means 16 at each end of the sleeve 14 determine the transverse adjustment of the generator. Y

The lower part of the generator casing is provided with a lug 17 to which is swiveled a threaded bolt 18. the free end of which passes through a sleeve 19 trunnioned at 20 in a support 21 depending from the car truck. Lock nuts 22 at each side of th sleeve 19 maintain the desired adjustment.

It will be noted that there are two means permitting longitudinal adjustment of the generator casing: the upper one including the stirrups 7 may be considered an initial or approximate adjustment. while the lower one last above described may be considered an auxiliary or final adjustment. being much simpler and easier to manipulate. Although the generator is in fixed position a relative movement of the generator and axle is permitted, due to its position on the truck. Y e

Although the generator has been shown in operative relation to the car axle by being mounted upon a car truck, it will be order to insure perfect alinement for an endless elastic connecting member, hereinafter termed a belt 25 connecting these pulleys. This belt, a section of which is shown in detail views Figs. 3 and 4, is preferably composed of a strip of belting 26 of leather or other material havin a high coelficient of friction, which is rst longitudinally compressed in any desired manner before being secured at a plurality of points by means of rivets 27 to a plurality of sheet steel strips or plates 28 copper plated to prevent rusting. By compressing the belting longitudinally it is thereby permitted to expand only within its elastic limit. stress on the. steel is never, under normal conditions, sufficient to exceed this limit. As herein shown, these sheet steel strips are four in number, being arranged in upper and lower or superimposed pairs 29, 30. The upper pair is provided-with inwardly extending cuts or slits 31 alternating with similar slits 32 extendinginwardly from the opposite side.

A space is provided between each pair of slits to accommodate the rivets 27 It will be noted that these slits do not extend all the way across, but only partially across, so that the strip is cut into zigzag form, thereby permitting a longitudinal extension thereof, as well as a transverse bending. The under set or pair of plates30 is similarly cut, yet the cuts alternate with those in the upper set so that the cuts only partially register. In other words, the cuts or slits 31 in the plates 29 extend inwardly from one side of the belt, while the slits 33 in the pair of plates 30 immediately therebeneath extend inwardly from the opposite side. The same way the slits 34 in the pair \of plates 30 extend from the opposite side from the slits 32 immediately thereabove. The ends of these pairs of steel plates may be considered as being L-shaped, so that The drawings, as these proportions are believed to be more advantageous, although of course it is to be understood that they may be .varied, if desired, and preferably'shou'ld be varied if different materials than those herein specified are used. The purpose of using substantially the dimensions herein shown is to so proportion materials that excessive pressure upon the driving and driven pulleys may be eliminated when running at full speed, for the pressure upon the pulleys will thus vary inversely with the rate of rotation. The centrifugal force exerted upon the belt will tend to move the belt outwardly away from the surface of the pulley, thereby relieving the pressure upon the bearings of the generator as well as reducing the effective pull (of the belt. It may also be noted that if the generator should be cut in at a speed of twelve miles per hour with full load and the same load maintained as the speed increases, the armature torque will decrease, and at a speed of sixty miles per hour will amount to about one-fifth of the torque of the twelvemile speed, thus ordinary apparatus giving a belt pressure five times greater than necessary. Therefore, by rigidly mounting the generator as herein disclosed the-pressure upon the driving pulley decreases as the speed increases, due to the increase in centrifugal action of the belt, and by proportioning the materials used the excessive pressure upon the pulleys with increasing speed will be almost entirely eliminated.

In Figs. 5 and 6 there is shown a modified form of belt which comprises pairs of steel plates 29 and 30 substantially the same as those above described. The under pair of plates 30 is provided at regular intervals with channel bars 37, each containing an aluminum block 38 held in place by means of the rivets 27. Other materials having a high coefficient of friction may be used, if desired, although aluminum has advantages, dueto its lightness and the fact that it will not rust.

It is thus seen that this invention provides a simple and practical form of car axle power transmitting mechanism adapted to accomplish. among others, all of the the.

objects and advantages above set forth.

As many changes could be made in the above construction and many apparently widely different embodiments of this invention could be made without departing from the scope thereof, it is intended that all matter contained in the above description or features of the invention herein described justably securing said and all statements of the scope of the invention, which, as a matter of language, might be said to fall therebetween.

Having described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. In an apparatus of the character described, in combination, a car truck, a generator suspended therefrom, means for adjustably securing said generator in fixed position, a pulley on the generator, a second pulley on an axle of the truck, and an elastic belt connecting said pulleys and adapted to drive the generator as the axle rotates, said belt being composed of materials so proportioned that an excessive pressure on the driving pulley is eliminated.

2. In an apparatus of the character de scribed, in combination, a car truck, a generator suspended therefrom, means for adjustably securing said generator in fixed position, a pulley on the generator, a second pulley on an axle of the truck, and an elastic belt connecting said pulleys and adapted to drive the generator as the axle rotates, said belt being composed of a strip of belting and an elastic strip of steel.

3. In an apparatus of the character described, in combination, a car truck, a generator suspended therefrom, means for adgenerator in fixed position, a pulley on the generator, a second pulley on an axle of the truck, and an elastic belt connecting said pulleys and adapted to drive the generator as the axle rotates, said belt being composed of an inner strip of belting and an outer strip of sheet steel.

4. In an apparatus of the character described, in combination, a car truck, a generator suspended therefrom, means for adjustably securing said generator in fixed position, a pulley on the generator, a second pulley on an axle of the truck, and an elastic belt connecting said pulleys and adapted to drive the generator as the axle rotates, said belt being composed of an inner strip of belting and an outer strip of sheet steel, said leather being longitudinally compressed before being secured tothe strip of steel.

In an apparatus of the character described, in combination, a car truck, a generator suspended therefrom, means for adjustably securing said generator in fixed position, a pulley on the generator, a second pulley on an axle of the truck, and an elastic belt connecting said pulleys and adapted to drive the generator as the axle rotates, said belt being composed of an inner strip of belting and an outer strip of sheet steel, said strip of steelbeing provided with cuts to permit an elastic extension thereof.

6. In an apparatus of the character described, in combination, a car truck, a generator suspended therefrom, and a belt connecting the generator with an axle of the truck, said belt being composed of a plurality of layers of belting and sheet steel,

the steel being copper plated to prevent rusting.

7. In an apparatus of the character described, in combination, a car truck, a generator suspended therefrom, and a belt connecting the generator with an axle of the truck, said belt being composed of an inner layer of material having a high coefficient 0 friction and an outer layer of relatively strong elastic material.

8. In an apparatusof the character described, in combination, a car truck, a generator suspended therefrom, and a belt connecting the generator with an axle of the truck, said belt being composed of an inner layer of material having a high coefficient of friction and an outer layer of non-rustable material provided with means to permit an elastic extension thereof.

9. In an apparatus of the character described, in combination, a ear truck, a gen erator adjustably supported thereby, a driven member connected with the generator, and a belt between the driven member and an aided the truck adapted to drive the generator, said belt including a reinforcing member having means permitting an elastic extension thereof.

10. In an apparatus of the character de scribed, in combination, a car truck, a generator adjustably supported thereby, a driven member connected with the generator, and a belt between .the driven member and an axle of the truck adapted to drive the generator, said belt including a plurality of sheets of steel connected to each other and having means associated therewith to permit an elastic extension thereof.

11. In an apparatus of the character described, in combination, a car truck having an axle, a pulley mounted on said axle, a generator supported from said truck, a second pulley directly connected with said generator, and an endless elastic belt extensible within its elastic limit on said pulleys for driving said generator.

12. In an apparatus of the character described, in combination, a car truck having an axle, a pulleymounted on said axle, a generator supported from said truck, a sec ond pulley directly connected with said generator an endless elastic belt on said pulleys for driving said generator, said belt including resilient metal members, and friction material between said members and the surface of the pulleys.

v13. In an apparatus of the character described, in combination, a car truck, a generator vadjustably supported thereby, a driven member connected with the generator, a belt between the driven member and an axle of the truck adapted to drive the generator, said belt including metallic members having means permitting an elastic extension thereof, and means having a high coefiicient of friction adapted to be interposed between the inner surface of the members and the surface of the driving and driven members.

14. In an'apparatus of the character described, in combination, a car truck, a generator adjustably supported thereby, a driven member connected with the generator, and a beltbetween the driven member and an axle of the truck adapted todrive the generator, said belt including a longitudinally compressed strip of leather and a sheet steel member secured thereto at a plurality. of points.

15. In an apparatus of the character described, in combination, a. car truck, a generator adjustably supported thereby, a driven member connected with the generator, and a belt between the driven member and an axle of the truck adapted to drive the generator, said belt includin a longitudinally compressed strip of ii rous material and a non-rustable plate secured thereto at a plurality of points, said plate having alternating slits cut in from opposite sides thereof extending partially across the plate to permit an elastic extension thereof.

16. In an apparatus of the character described, in combination, a car truck, a generator adjustably supported thereby, a driven member connected with the generator, and-a belt between the driven member and an axle of the truck adapted to drive the generator, said belt comprising a plurality of superimposed sheet steel plates, said plates having partially registering. slits cut in alternately from opposite sides thereof to permit a zigzag expansion of the belt.

17. In an apparatus of the character described, in combination, a car truck, a generator adjustably supported thereby, a driven member connected with the generator, and a belt between the driven member and an axle of the truck adapted to drive the generator, said belt comprising a plurality of metal sheets arranged in pairs and secured to each other at a plurality of points, each pair being provided with a plurality of slits extending inwardly from the sides thereof partially across the sheet and alternating with similar slits cut from the opposite side, the slits in one pair of plates only partially registering with the slits of another pair.

18. In an apparatus of the character described, in combination, a car truck, a generator adjustably supported thereby, a driven member connected with the generato'r, a belt between the driven member and an axle of the truck adapted to drive the i generator, said belt comprising a plurality of sheets of steel arranged in pairs and secured to each other at a plurality of points,

vto permit expansion of said belt.

, scribed, in combination, a car truck, a gene erator adjustably supported thereby, a pulley eonnected'with the generator, a belt between the pulley and an axle of the truck to drive the generator, said belt comprising a plurality of sheets of steel arranged in paws and secured to each other at a plu rality of points, each pair being provided with a plurality of slits extending inwardly from the sides thereof partially across the sheet and alternatin with similar slits cut from the opposite si e, the slits in one pair of plates only partially registering with the slits of another'pair, and a strip of longitudinally compressed belting secured to said plates at a plurality of points whereby the generator may be driven at full load with a tensile stress in the belt less than the elastic limit of the materials of which the belt is composed. a I 20. In an apparatus of the character described, in combination, a car truck, a generator, a pulley on the generator, a pulley on an axle. of the truck, and an elastic belt connectingsaid pulleys and adapted to drive the generator as the axle rotates, said belt comprising a strip of friction material and an outer reinforcing elastic strip.

21. In an apparatus of the character described, in combination, a car truck, a generator having a fixed relation thereto, a belt connecting the generator with the axle of the truck adapted to drive the generator under full-load with a tensile stress in the belt less than its elastic limit.

22. In an apparatus of the character described, in combination, a driving pulley, a driven pulley, a generator operatively connected to said driven pulley and secured in a normally fixed relation to said driving pulley, and a belt connecting said pulleys and adapted to drive the generator as the axle rotates, said belt comprising materials so constructed and related. to each other that an excessive pressure on the said, pulleys is eliminated as the speed thereof increases.

23. In an apparatus of the character described, in combination, a generator, a pulley thereon, a driving pulley, and a belt connecting said pulleys,said belt comprising a lurality of superimposed sheet steel plates aving partially. registering slits cut in alternately from opposite sides thereof 24. In an apparatus of the character described, in combinatioma generator, a pul' ley thereon, a driving pulley, a belt connecting said pulleys, said belt including members constructed to permit an elastic extension thereof, and means having a high c0- efiicient of friction interposed between the inner surface of the metallic members and the surfaces of the pulleys.

25. In an apparatus of the character described, in combination, a generator, a pulley thereon, a driving pulley, and a belt connecting said pulleys, said belt comprising a layer of longitudinally compressed material and a plurality of members constructed to permit elastic extension thereof.

siliently connected parts for rendering said belt longitudinally extensible and contractible under the influence-of centrifugal force as the speed of said pulley varies.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature, in the presence of two Witnesses.

RUDOLPH VUILLEUMIER.

Witnesses: L. A. WATSON, 

